Fairy Trail in New Jersey

Despite a reputation for having a rough - perhaps even gruff - exterior, New Jersey has an impish side.

Just check out these photos from our very own Garden State Fairy Trail.

Fun for Everyone at the Liberty Science Center and an Awesome Giveaway

A huge thank you to Andrea McDonald for this guest post about her family's visit to the Liberty Science Center, and also a huge thank you to Liberty Science Center for providing admission tickets, as well as tickets to giveaway.

This past President’s Day weekend, looking for something fun to do in the subzero temperatures, my family and my sister’s family decided to go to the Liberty Science Center with our four kids ranging in age from 4 to 9.  

We were excited for the Science, Sabers and Star Wars: The Force Awakens event that was taking place just for the weekend.  However, we arrived to find that what seemed like literally thousands of others were just as excited about that, and the Star Wars event was incredibly crowded with long lines.  So we quickly decided instead to check out some of the many other exhibits currently at the Science Center.  

We first found our way to the Sid the Science Kid: The Super-Duper Exhibit which runs through May 15, 2016 and is included with general admission tickets.  This exhibit allows young learners to explore STEM activities through a variety of activities like: Catapulting Sid’s toys into his toy box using a lever, testing inertia using toys on a skateboard, experimenting with friction and testing different surfaces and designing their own “Super-Duper-Ooper Big Idea. We knew our 4 year old would have fun, as he really likes Sid the Science Kid, but weren’t sure our 7 year olds or 9 year old would be engaged by it.  We didn’t need to worry.  All the kids loved it. 

Our 4 year old son could have spent all day playing with the ball machine (for lack of the technical term), using the pulleys to bring the balls up to his 9 year old cousin waiting on the top part of the structure and then catching them when they fell and trying to determine which ball would land first if two were thrown down at the same time. My daughter really enjoyed using the microscope to look at objects focused in different ways and at varying sizes.

After we managed to drag the kids out of the Side the Science Kid Exhibit, we went to Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition around the corner. Tickets are required for this exhibition - $27.75 for adults, $22.75 for children 2-12 and $24.75 for seniors.  The additional cost is well worth it for the history buffs among us.  In it, more than 130 legendary artifacts conserved from the ships debris field are showcased.  As we entered, we each received a replica boarding pass of an actual passenger aboard the Titanic.  And we moved through the life of the ship, from its construction, to life on board, to the ill-fated sinking and amazing artifact rescue efforts.  The adults really enjoyed seeing the many artifacts, while the kids especially liked seeing the re-created first and third class cabins and touching the iceberg. 

The “Memorial Gallery” where we could take our boarding passes to learn whether our passenger and traveling companions survived or died was interesting to adults and children alike.

In addition to the special exhibitions, we also visited more permanent exhibits such as Our Hudson Home, which explores our complex relationship with the distinct and special Hudson River ecosystem.  Our girls had a great time donning lab coats and conducting an experiment in ecology.

All in all, we spent a great day at the Liberty Science Center, and had so much fun at the many other exhibits that we didn’t even regret not making it to the Star Wars exhibit.  Especially after we ran into a storm trooper on our way out and managed to get our picture taken with him.

And now for the giveaway...

 WIN A FAMILY FOUR-PACK OF TICKETS TO THE LIBERTY SCIENCE CENTER!

Liberty Science Center is offering a family prize pack of four tickets to visit the museum!

Entry:

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Have a Great Family Day at the Liberty Science Center! {Ticket Giveaway} #SpringBreakLSC

My family recently spent a fun-filled day at the Liberty Science Center as part of #SpringBreakLSC with Jersey Moms Media. The Liberty Science Center is one of our favorite places in New Jersey to spend a day. It's a great place for a family outing because there are exhibits and activities for kids of all ages, not to mention plenty of interest for adults, too. 

There were several new exhibits to check out at the Liberty Science Center since our last visit:

Sesame Street Presents: The Body -- open now through May 3, 2015, this is a wonderful exhibit for kids ages 2-8, filled and lots of Sesame Street fun and lots of hands-on opportunities for learning, with 17 different activities throughout the exhibit that has three areas that cover Your Outsides, Your Insides and Staying Healthy. 

Highlights for my kids included Oscar's Sneeze Machine (pull the lever to make a giant sneeze) and meeting the furry red monster:

You can find a full list of dates when you can Meet Elmo here.

Beyond Rubik's Cube - open just until Sunday, April 19, 2015, so catch it while you can! This exhibit is the first museum  exhibition about the Rubik's Cube, and is 7,000 square feet of games, puzzles and more devoted solely to the history, art and engineering of this amazing cube.

From the LSC.org site - I have no idea how they did the animation.

Infinity Climber - this relatively new addition to the museum described as "one structure, infinite possibilities" is an incredible play space high above the atrium floor. Made from curved steel pipes and individual platforms to step on, it is the first suspended climbing play space of its kind. Don't worry - the whole area is coverd with protective mesh wire so there's no fear of falling climbers. Please note if you are going with younger kids there is a 42 inch height requirement.

Other favorites from our day at the Liberty Science Center included the Touch Tunnel (the most popular exhibit there) and Our Hudson Home (don't miss seeing the Harbor Tank with live fish!).

** Experience a family day of fun and learning at the Liberty Science Center **

Enter to win a Family Four Pack of tickets to the Liberty Science Center!

Thanks to the generosity of Liberty Science Center, one lucky winner will win four passes to visit the Liberty Science Center. Enter here. Entries close Monday, March 30, 2015.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
I received admission for my family and me as well as promotional items and a travel stipend. All opinions are my own.

For more photos and coverage, look for #SpringBreakLSC on Twitter and Instagram!

Fun for Kids in NJ: The Big Apple Circus is in Bridgewater through Sunday, March 17

It's hard to say who loves the circus more, my kids (or me). So we welcomed the chance to see the Big Apple Circus, currently showing under the Big Top in Bridgewater, NJ through Sunday, March 17.

We had seen the Big Apple Circus' Dream Big tour in Manhattan last year, and so I knew my kids  (ages 3, 7 and 9) would love the chance to see the new show, Legendarium: A Journey into Circus Past.

Legendarium is all new-for the 35th season of the Big Apple Circus, and hearkens back to the early days of the circus with lots of old-school tributes to yesteryear. Glorious costumes, amazing feats, and of course some clowning-around all add-up to a fantastic experience for all ages.

My kids couldn't really choose a favorite act, but when forced to choose my two daughters both thought that Elayne Kramer was the best one. Performing since she was seven, and practicing contortion since she was four, she is a six-generation circus performer. She gave a truly spellbinding performance, and left us wondering over and over again, how did she do that?

 

The Big Apple Circus is a single-ring circus, with all seating within 50 feet of the performers, so it is perfect for kids. There are amazing feats of human skill, highlights for us were an acrobat, the contortionist mentioned above, and an incredible bicycle troupe from China, all which mesmerized my kids (and me).

Also very popular with my kids (and me) were the animal acts. In keeping with the Legendarium theme of yesteryear, the dog performance was set in Victorian-era Central Park and it was delightful.  All of the dogs featured were rescues from shelters, which adds an additional heartwarming aspect to the story.

And of course, no visit to the circus would be complete without cotton candy, it's hard to say who likes it more: my kids (or me).

Big Apple Circus presents Legendairum at Bridgewater's TD Bank Ballpark through Sunday, Marcy 17, 2013. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit BigAppleCircus.org.

Performance runs two hours with one intermission. All ages, but best for 3 and older.

Next stops on the Big Apple Circus tour are Boston and Queens.

We received tickets to the press performance. Neither the opinions of my kids (or me) were influenced, and opinions here are all our own.

 

Giving the People What They Want: Six Flags Hurricane Harbor

This week's Giving the People What They Want didn't come from a Google Analytics Search.

No, this week it's a real-life example of Giving the People What They Want.

My husband and I left work behind on Friday and took our six- and eight-year-old on a summer's-almost-over outing to Six Flags Hurricane Harbor.

Can you tell how much I love water parks?

We had a blast, and it sure beat working. Or, as my husband put it, "we're participating in an important on-site client meeting."

Albeit a client meeting with a lazy river, a wave pool and water slides. And the next day, for me, a sunburn.

I was not compensated for this post, which is the case in most things I do in life as well as on this blog.

You can read a full-review of our day at Hurricane Harbor on BaristaKids.com.

GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED A Great Day in Jersey City and A Giveaway for Two Tickets to the Liberty Science Center!

The Giveaway has ended. Winner to be annouced soon.

We spent Father's Day in Jersey City, and it was awesome.

I had no idea Jersey City had such a gorgeous waterfront, including amazing views of Manhattan.

We had brunch at the Hyatt Regency, which is right on the water in Jersey City and my toddler son Ziggy just loved watching the boats go by.

Afterwards, we headed out for a walk on the promenade where we told the kids they could see their grandma's apartment across the way.

So of course, Ziggy called her.

They made plans to go for a swim and meet half-way next time.

Next, we went over to the Liberty Science Center.

Field Station: Dinosaurs - Just Another Reason to Heart New Jersey!

New Jersey already has it all - famous beaches, natural beauty, industry and incredible theme parks.

And now it has Field Station: Dinosaurs, an incredible travel-back-in-time experience in Secacus.

Being Jerseyites, we drove to Field Station: Dinosaurs, but New Yorkers can also get there easily via New Jersey Transit from Penn Station, and then a short shuttle.

We arrived in the morning, paid $10 for parking and took the absolute farthest away parking space as directed by the parking lot attendant. I was a little miffed, but decided someone had to park there, so it might as well be us.

When we entered the park we were given a Trail Map as well as a Passport, which can get stamped at various designated places. My kids were super-excited about getting stamps in their Passports.

The main attraction of Field Station: Dinosaurs are the giant animatronic dinosaurs, and they are seriously amazing. Their necks swivel, their eyes blink, and they roar - very loud, authentic sounding dinosaur roars.

My kids (ages 2, 6 and 8) were all equally enthralled, and I'm happy to report that the two-year-old was not scared at all.

In addition to the dinos, there are various activities. Several were not open the day we were there, which reduced the stamp-getting options for my kids who were on a Passport-stamping quest. There were also a few spots with stamp potential but for one reason or another my kids didn't qualify for a stamp.

Personally, I thought they could have been a little more loose with the stamps, but I will fully admit to also being of the everyone-gets-a-participation-medal school of parenting. My two older kids only managed to eek out a single stamp, and my little guy couldn't complete that activity so he couldn't get even one.

There was a lot of educational dino info throughout the park, which I think would be particularly interesting to dino-obsessed and older kids, as well as to visiting school groups.

Field Station: Dinosaurs was a truly a one-of-a-kind experience, and I'm glad that New Jersey is home to this latest piece of awesome. I would consider it a must-see for anyone visiting the area, and it would make a great day trip for folks on a New York City vacation.

However, I should also note it is an expensive piece of awesome. Ticket prices in advance are $17.50 for kids and $20 for adults, and at the park ticket prises rise to $20 for kids and $25 for adults. Kids two and under are free, and there are discounts for seniors and groups. However, for frequent visitors, season passes are $48-54 so that might be a good - and affordable - option for repeat visitors.

To learn more about Field Station: Dinosaurs visit their website,  like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter: @Jerseysaurus. You can also purchase discounted admission tickets online, as well as season passes.

Field Station:Dinosaurs is open daily from 10am to 6pm.

My family received free tickets to Field Station: Dinosaurs for review purposes from MamaDrama. All opinions are my own.